Course effectiveness reports are course specific PDF files that explore students’ outcomes over a 6 year period highlighting various student characteristics, their intersections and course outcomes. The over 20 pages of graphs are accompanied by narratives and guiding questions to encourage discussion among the various instructors that teach each course and/or for self reflection. Reports are currently distributed ONLY to faculty in HHMI IE3 and related learning communities and/or the prior NSF SEISMIC SELC learning communities. The report helps faculty engaged in learning communities reflect on what is happening in the courses they teach, encouraging a collective approach to improvement in those courses while expanding awareness of the potential variability in course outcomes.
Current/Potential Outcomes
- Expanded awareness of which students a course is serving well vs. need improvement. The Biology LC expressed concern with patterns observed for first generation and transfer students leading to extensive discussion on potential interventions. Similar challenges were observed in the multi-STEM faculty learning community.
- Course improvement actions focused on the students taking the course rather than the students faculty may think are in their course.
- Increased teaching related conversations between colleagues.
Users
- Individual faculty teaching courses who are also participating in a learning community and/or TLTC offering, and are looking at courses that offer 100+ seats per year.
How to Request these Reports
- Course Effectiveness Reports are meant for learning communities. If you are bringing together groups of faculty to work on course and curriculum improvement and would like have reports for the relevant courses, please contact Educational Effectiveness, EdEffectiveness@umd.edu , with a description of your project and we will contact you for a meeting to discuss the potential benefit and time needed to produce the reports.